Adeline Mowbray : or The Mother and Daughter

Powerful and complex, this novel touches on issues of race, gender roles, and women’s education in the late eighteenth century.

When Adeline Mowbray puts her mother Editha’s radical theories into practice by eloping with, but not marrying, a notorious writer, the mother and daughter are estranged for many years, but finally reconciled. As its subtitle suggests, Adeline Mowbray, or The Mother and Daughter begins and ends with their story, but its complex plot encompasses almost every other human relationship. This engaging novel explores many issues important in the Romantic period, from women’s education to the ethics of slavery and colonialism.

This Broadview Edition uses the first edition of 1805 as its copy text, but also includes important variants from the 1810 and 1844 editions. The appendices include contemporary reviews and material expanding on the novel’s themes of women’s education, marriage, slavery, and the tension between feeling and reason.